day's action in the u.s. stock market. the dow sort of middle point of the range today. now down 22 points at 13,435. you remember yesterday they threw in the towel at the close. we'll see what happens this final hour. the nasdaq is down 19 points. hardest hit of the major averages so far today at 33,097. the s&p down almost 6 points now at 1435. >> tensions are continuing to rise in europe as we speak. the protesters sweeping the region for another day. protesting in greece and spain. really highlighting the great challenges that politicians there are facing in terms of getting austerity measures passed. with these images of violence in mind, many are wondering if europe's troubles will once again dominate the u.s. market. >> let's get thoughts on that in today's closing bell exchange from bill, david, and our own rick santelli. good to see you guys. welcome back. bill, you acknowledge all these

issues, all these problems, but for you it's still time to invest, yes? >> absolutely. the average investor has been hearing all kinds of nasty stories for the last two years. a lot of people have gone to the sidelines and haven't been rewarded. the real ball game is to take advantage of the opportunities that exist. >> what are the opportunities, in your view, that exist? we've got the oil market really seeing a pretty good deceleration last couple of days. is that a buying opportunity on energy? do you look at energy stocks? how do you want to play it? >> there's lots of ways to play the game. you can buy big oil. you can buy the pipelines, buy the drillers, buy etfs. buy something. the bottom line is america's going to have to take the lead in turning this ball game around. then you'll see what happens in the rest of the world. >> david, this weakness does have your attention. it's affected the way you trade this market, yes? >> i think more and more, bill, europe is slowing more than

expected. china's not going to grow 7%. it's more likely to grow 5%. the u.s. is growing at 2% and probably 1.5% in the first half of next year. yet, the s&p 500 is like this heavyweight champion. it keeps absorbing body blows after body blows. up better than 16% total return this year. as much as i dislike china and europe slowing, i think you want to be a net buying with the simple caution we're due for a 5% correction probably between now and early 2013. if you get that, you have to be a net buyer because companies are still on average doing much better than expected. the one number that pops out to me is the 16% return on equity for the average company in the s&p 500 when valuations are compelling. >> david, what about the issues in europe? look at these pictures that we're -- we actually have live pictures in spain.

with all that protesting going on, people are upset, social unrest. does it make it to the u.s.? how does this impact the u.s. market? >> it does -- >> pay attention to the greeks. >> i remember vividly in 2010 when there were the same type of pictures in greece. we had a 15% decline in stock prices in the summer of 2010. but as you and i and bill have discuss discussed, if you keep going back to february 2010 when greece first came on people's radars, we've had a 12% compounded return for u.s. stocks, annualized returns since february 2010. we will continue to grow through this, maybe not at that pace, but we'll continue to get a high single-digit rate of return. >> rick, are we seeing much of a safe haven play as a result of what's going on in europe? yields have come down. the dollar is a little stronger. is that what's going on? is that why, because of what's going on in europe, do you think? >> i think the safe harbor

trade, the fact we're at three-week low yields on a ten year, and not -- 138 was the closing extreme ten-year yield on the 24th of july. we're not far away. really, at a 161. yes, that's the answer. i think down here when they look at oil, they come to a slightly different conclusion. they say geo politics has upped the price, but now the slowing economy is questioning how long traders can hold on to those premiums. you can't outrun economic fundamentals no matter how much you print. >> what do you think about that, bill? even though corporate america looks strong, looks like the earnings estimates need to come down. >> i think the summer of dal droms are about over. going forward, the thing that might be the big spark that changes the psychology and the ball game is the election. i don't believe all the polls. we'll see what happens. if we're right that there's a seat change and some fellas join

the unemployment line deservedly, then you might see money be put to work. this fiscal cliff and all the other nasties we hear about are not going to be permanent dampeners on the economy. i think you have to look forward and anticipate what's next. >> is it the same scenario -- >> that one i disagree on. >> okay. bill, are you looking at different scenarios if the president wins re-election versus a romney win? how are you playing that? >> well, number one, i don't think anybody's going to have a landslide. i think that the possibility of change is going to be very close in terms of the presidency of the house and the senate. it will be interesting. we don't see any gigantic changes. if that's the case, then i think that there will have to be deals made and we'll get back to business. >> all right, david -- >> it's not sustainable. >> right. >> david, how do you disagree with bill? he's got that rosy scenario. you don't. >> i don't. $800 billion bill coming due in

the first quarter. it won't be that much. it might be $200 billion. nevertheless, that's going to slow down real u.s. gdp growth from 2% to less than 2% in the first half of 2013. that's going to have an impact on earnings. i might like what's happening on an individual company basis, but this fiscal cliff is simply just not the right remedy for the u.s. economy and profits to grow above expectations. it's all on the back of the fed. we've seen the good news out of the fed. it's going to stop here sometime soon. i don't like what's happening on the fiscal side. i don't think we're going to get anything materially good come the outcome, whoever wins in november. >> all right, gentlemen. we're out of time. thank you, all. always enjoy your comments. see you later. >> my pleasure. >> thank you. >> back to oil now. the shock continues today. crude prices below $90 a barrel in today's session here in new york. sharon is here with the latest on what that move means. >> that's right, bill.

this big move we see below $90 a barrel, first time we've seen it close down here since early august. meanwhile, look what happened to gasoline today. we saw gasoline futures spike as much as 4% on a refinery explosion in canada. the refinery is saying not really any impact on production. a lot of traders skiddish about the fuel supply outlook. and because we're in maintenance season. over the last two weeks or so, since september 14th, we've seen a 10% slide in the price of crude oil. meanwhile, gasoline futures have barely budged. keep in mind, the gasoline prices you pay at the pump, they're based on this gasoline futures market much more so than the oil price. that is why you're paying $3.81 a gallon for the national average, which is just about four cents less than a week ago. back to you. >> don't you think there's something wrong when just one refinery problem has that great an impact on prices? we need more refineries.

>> we definitely need more refineries. this really was not a very big explosion, nor did it have any impact on production. a lot of traders are just really nervous. we got a supply report out today showing a decline in gasoline supplies. there's a concern we might see an uptick, even if it's a slight one, in demand. that could push prices even higher. >> i've been waiting to fill up the tank. i better hurry home after this. thank you, sharon. heading toward the close. 50 minutes left in the trading session. the dow holding steady with a decline of 36 points. >> things are worsening here. don't touch that remote. we're just getting started on this jam-packed wednesday edition of the "closing bell." coming up, spend-happy americans or greedy banks? we'll talk about what's driving the first rise in overdraft fees since the financial crisis next. plus, where is the love? barnes & noble rolls out new version of its nook tablet, so why is its stock still seeing red this year? and will boom pickens dream

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welcome back. about 45 minutes to go in today's trading session. let's give you a quick market stat check on the dow industrials. the dow industrials on track for the first four-session losing streak in about a month. blame it on renewed worries about europe and the rest of the global economy. the market under selling pressure today and moderate volume. down 36 points on the dow. take a look at some of the worst performing sectors that the hour. energy and technology. energy group falling for a third session in a row. despite consumer outcries over the financial crisis, we're seeing overdraft fees rise for the first time since the financial crisis. >> this is incredible. >> this really is.

a new study by moebs services says america got hit with $31.5 billion in overdraft bank fees in the past year. that's up 2% from a year ago. >> think about that for a second. they charged roughly $30 per overdraft. that's 1 billion checks that bounced in one year. the survey says that's because banks are charging more in overdraft fees and more americans are overspending. so with that in mind, who do we put the blame on here? is it shady bank practices? are they price gouging? or simply poor money management by those writing the checks? we have both sides of that story right now. alex sanchez of the florida bankers association says consumers should pay more attention to their bank accounts. amen to that. ed of the u.s. public interest research group says these fees go too far. oh, boy. a debate going here. alex, what are people thinking when they, you know -- all these bouncing checks going around here? >> well, you know, bill, we're

all consumers. what with i would advise consumers is, please, check your account balances often. go to a bank that will notify you as soon as your balance reaches a certain point. tie your checking account into other accounts so that if you do get low on your checking account, those checks will be cashed by your other accounts, a credit card or savings account. >> i do need a nanny for this? who doesn't pay attention to what's in their checking account? >> right. >> most importantly, bill, be responsible. we all have to be responsible for our finances. people just have to do that. >> exactly. >> maybe, but also -- >> what about the banks? >> there's an argument about the banks. what do you think, ed? is this too severe? >> the banks have to be responsible. even the federal reserve, not the best consumer regulator in history, said that banks had to be fairer in 2009.

you couldn't engage people in standard overdraft protection unless they opted in. the banks are still tricking people into opting in. most of the bouncing is not checks. >> that's not true, ed. >> most of the bouncing e ining >> that's not true. >> let me finish. >> let's be nice, guys. finish. >> most of the bouncing is on small debit transactions. guess what? the biggest banks are not being responsible. they're now baying hundreds of millions in the case of big banks and tens of millions in the case of the regional banks in penalties in court-ordered settlements for changing the order of checks and debits at the end of the night to more checks bounce. it's really unfair. >> alex? >> well, bill, look, the bottom line that ed doesn't want to address is personal responsibility. you know, in the latest study that i have, which was 2008, banks lost $350 million due to

unpaid checks that were written. that's the biggest fraud area in checks. here's what ed doesn't want to address, bill and maria. you know, dry cleaners, supermarkets, other small businesses, if you write a bad check there, they will charge you $35. why should the commercial payment -- why should the commercial payment system break down? if a small employer -- >> look, look. >> there's also a market. go to another bank that's charging you less. that's the free market. it's capitalism. >> there's a punitive nature to all this. a bank is going to charge a lot of money to try and get you to not do it the next time. >> that's correct. >> ed, are you suggesting -- >> wait a minute. >> are you sunligggesting banks pulling the wool over consumers' eyes? >> absolutely. over the last 12 years, vendors tricked -- told banks, we've got a product you can trick consumers with. it's called standard overdraft protection. don't tell consumers about a line of credit.

don't tell consumers about a transfer from savings, which are very good deals, and the best options, for consumers. instead, engage them with this product called quote, unquote, standard overdraft protection. it just doesn't work. >> to say don't tell the customers -- isn't the ownous on the customer? >> it is. >> all right, hey, ed first. >> if the customer has full information about all her choices, yes, but the banks don't give you all your choices. and they're still tricking people into opting into the worst of the three choices. that's why the new cfpb is investigating whether banks are being unfair to consumers and whether they should ban the practice of reordering checks to get more checks to bounce. >> all right. alex, you get the last word. >> maria -- we're out of time? >> go ahead. last word. >> okay, good.

if ed is a small business owner, he gets paid for his services, and the check that is paid to ed bounces. he pays all his employees. that is not fair. so the commercial payments breakdown, it's all about personal responsibility. banks want customers to avoid this. that's why they offer services to tie this to other accounts for protection. ed, that is totally unfalse in the claims you're making that banks are fooling people. >> they don't market those other services. >> yes, they do. >> they market the services best for the banks. >> why don't you choose another bank that has lower overdraft fees? >> it's hard to vote with your feet. there's a lot of stickiness to switching bank accounts. more people are doing it. go that o a small bank or credi union. >> americans are responsible, ed. you're talking like americans are irresponsible. that's not true. >> the banks are irresponsible. i didn't say americans were irresponsible. banks are. >> something tells me you guys

aren't going to be having lunch together any time soon, but we appreciate it. >> thank you. >> all right. ed, alex, thank you. >> banks in the spotlight again in the next hour here. maria going to talk with the former head of the financial crisis inquiry commission about their accountability for the financial crisis. we'll get his take on that. >> absolutely. 40 minutes before the closing bell sounds. we have a market under pressure today. the dow industrial down about 26 points. >> guess what? another new tablet on the market. barnes & noble making a push with its new nook tablet. is amazon still a better buy for investors? we have that debate coming up. >> later, reality check with consumer confidence hitting seven-month highs and housing supposedly past the worst. are small business owners using economic uncertainty as an excuse not to hire, or are there still genuine issues they're tackling? back in a moment. governor of getting it done. you know how to dance... with a deadline.

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welcome back. down day for the major averages. the nasdaq remains the biggest lagger. seema mody is here with the biggest movers. >> interesting trend we're seeing. a couple large tech stocks outperforming apple. we're seeing r.i.m. shares continuing to move higher. its ceo providing encouraging statements about its blackberry 10 device. google analysts saying on a fundamental and technical basis,

the stock looks strong. shares diverging from its 200-day moving average, a very bullish sign. we see google up around 0.3%. >> thank you so much. meanwhile, the tablet wars heating up again. barnes & noble announcing the release of its latest nook devices. this coming on the heels of amazon unveiling its newest kindle fire. investors want to know one thing, which is the better stock to own? on the technical side, ennis tanner. on the fundamental side, steve cortez. good to have you on the program. thank you so much for joining us today. ennis, let's talk charts. which stock looks better? >> so let's look at barnes & noble first. normally i like to buy strength and sell weaknesses. barnes & noble over the last four years has been between $10 and $25. $10 has been strong support. book value is around $12. i think this is an important support level. i expect barnes & noble to

bounce off of that important $10 support area. in contrast, amazon, i think, is at an entry point that's much more dangerous. amazon has been in a much stronger four-year up trend. the four-year chart of amazon from 2008 to 2012 is basically a great bull market. >> good looking chart. >> very good looking chart. normally i'd like this. in the last year, it really has encountered resistance at 250. i think this is a much riskier entry than barnes & noble. >> so you're not of the belief that when a chart is looking this good that it continues to go up. >> normally i do like to buy strength and sell weakness. in this case, the nature of the one-year chart makes me more bullish on barnes & noble. >> steve, what do you think? in terms of the fundamentals, does it tell a different picture? >> maria, i think it really does. i'm not saying that barnes & nobo noble is going to crash any lower here. i'm saying amazon -- look,

admittedly amazon is an incredibly hot stock. it's outpaced even apple and google. clearly it's had an incredible run. i think investors should wait for a pull back to buy. on the barnes & noble side, i would caution. believing in these retail reinvention stories has been costly for investors. we saw it in best buy. now we're seeing it in barnes & noble. amazon is on the other side. this it truly the new economy at its finest with extremely high barriers to entry. i'll admit i'm one of those addicted amazon prime shoppers. it seems every single day the cortez household gets a delivery from amazon prime. so often it's gotten me a bit worried that maybe the ups man has something. going on with my wife. in any case, amazon is hitting the exact correct kind of shopper, which is a shopper who's not terribly price sensitive who loves the efficiency and delivery of

amazon and is willing to spend compared to the average consumer. >> the stock has done so well. bottom line, you like barnes & noble better. how much better can it get? >> i think $15. >> thank you so much. bill, over to you. >> heading toward the close. the dow down 27 points. we're going to come back and talk about protecting user privacy. twitter's ceo went on the offensive speaking on cnbc earlier today. listen. >> those kinds of rights to that data, we think, are important. we're going to defend our users, those rights. >> more from twitter's ceo is still to come here on the "closing bell." also ahead, a new survey shows small business owners holding back on hiring because of economic uncertainty. as consumer confidence hits a seven-month high and housing improves, we ask if they're living in a different real. and later, boone pickens

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welcome back. we have weakness on wall street today. about 30 minutes left before the closing bell sounds. the dow jones industrial average down about 38 points in the home stretch. more from mary thompson. >> just about seven points above the lows of the day for the dow jones industrial average, pressured by europe. we want to highlight one group. you heard seema talking about some of the bounce back and the big tech names earlier today. the tech sector was the weakest performer among the ten we follow. energy right now has taken that slot. turning around in large part because we've seen a turn around in hewlett-packard. they've come off the lows of the session. by the way, tech is the worst performing sector for the last month. one reason we've seen continued weak snts earnings warning that came out from the electronics contractor, j. bill circuit. back to you. >> thanks so much, mary. despite a series of rosy

economic reports this week, a recent poll says most small businesses and manufacturers are painting a bleak picture for our economy. they blame the uncertainty over the fiscal cliff and regulatory policies for holding them back. more than half of them say they won't start a business today. >> with the elections just weeks away, does this poll accurately reflect what's going on out there, or is it just political and another excuse not to hire? j.t. foster of the heritage foundation agrees. dean baker seays it's all politics. welcome, gentlemen. >> what i like to do, i'm an economist. you look at what people do, not what they say. these are the worst numbers in three years. three years ago they were laying off 200,000 workers a month. now they're hiring about 100, 150,000 workers a month. the investment year over year is up by 8%. it was down 30%.

this isn't a serious answer. i think, you know, they're probably influenced by what they hear, you know, coming out of the romney campaign and elsewhere in the media. it's not what they're doing. >> well, wait a minute. they're saying that the expense of new regulation and new policies have, in fact, hurt their businesses. >> well, i'm sure they're saying that. you know, if you look at the evidence for it, they're hiring people, they're increasing investment. when you look at the cost of new regulation, it's not very much. they point to the numbers of pages. there's no correlation between the numbers of pages and the cost of regulation. i trust they know that. >> j.d., what about that? is there a disconnect here we're seeing between the results and the reality? >> the disconnect is between washington and reality. what dean is talking about, saying people who are actually going to do the hiring and do the investing, their attitudes don't matter. doesn't matter what they say to surveys. they're actually all getting together and having this political statement that they're worried about the economy. no, they are worried about the economy. they're worried about

taxmageddon. it's going to get worse. it's going to get worse because taxmageddon is getting closer. the president is perfectly content for them to all wait until after the election. of course they're nervous. they're going to get more nervous. >> the budget office says we're expecting a recession next year because of this. >> right. i mean, dean, let's face it, are you going to hire new work fers you don't know what your tax rates are going to be next year? are you going to hire new workers -- >> well, we're nonprofit, but i'm happy to hire. >> hypothetically speaking, why would anybody hire heads to the payroll when you have no idea -- >> you have a lot of evidence -- >> excuse me. >> go ahead and finish. >> why would anyone hire new jobs when they have no idea what their tax rates will be and no idea what agency will oversee them because the regulatory environment is still lacking clarity? >> far and away, the most important criteria for businesses and hiring people is

the demand for labor. when they see demand for labor, they hire people. it's evident insofar as they're not hiring people, it's a demand more labor. if the story were true, you'd be seeing an increase in average hours worked. the idea is they would hire someone, but they're so worried about washington that they can't do that, then they would increase hours per worker. they're not doing that in any sector of the economy. this is clearly blowing smoke. >> j.d., let me give you the last word because we are running out of time. don't you think that with all of the dysfunctionalty that goes on in congress they will find some sort of common ground so we don't have the taxmageddon? >> i don't think anyone has confidence that's the case. we all hope they'll get their act together and prevent this huge tax increase from hitting the economy. no one has any particular confidence. if you're a businessman, you're the labor demand. you're not going to hire anybody without knowing. you're going to wait if you can. most of them can wait. it's just going to get worse.

>> all right. gentlemen, thank you both. it is one of the real thorny issues of our time right now as we head toward the election. former credit investment banker was reportedly arrested earlier today by london police. u.s. authorities are criminally charged him back in february alleging he and two other creditors conspired to inflate the value of mortgage bonds during the 2008 financial crisis. prosecutors are expected to seek his extradition from the u.k. if he doesn't voluntarily return to the united states. there you are. >> yeah. >> take a break here, come back with about 25 minutes left. the dow heading a little lower, down 40 points. >> september is traditionally the worst month for stocks, but the market is faring better than expected. market watchers will weigh in next. also, twitter battles the government to protect your privacy. we'll hear from that company's ceo still to come. after the bell, find out

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20 minutes to go in today's trading session before the closing bell sounds. we have a market under pressure. let's give you a quick market stat check on the nasdaq. composite on track for the first three-day losing streak since august 22nd. the nasdaq weaker by about 26 points. it had been down 37 points at the day's low. check out some of the worst laggers today. network appliance, sandisk among the biggest laggers today. >> we know markets and investors are back in wait and see mode. earlier today, john engler -- >> this is an economy that wants to move, that i believe could lead the world back. it's sort of like the nfl. if the players don't know how to play the game, don't know how it's going to be refereed. well, in washington our referees are on strike.

they're not getting much done. thampbl >> that about sums it up. let's bring in our guests. gentlemen, good to have you on the program. how real is this issue? you know, because of this gridlock in washington and this inability to get anything done, you're really seeing business stall. >> well, business people and investors never have as much information as they'd like and never as much visibility into the future. you do the best you can with what you have. we're in this slog. it's a global slog. europe is also in trouble. china is growing very slowly. i think we will fight our way out of it. i think there's good opportunity for investors in risky assets. >> do you acknowledge there's a bit of a paralysis going on as a result of the uncertainty about the fiscal cliff? >> there's always uncertainty. >> i know that, but this is -- >> this isn't more intense now than it was in the middle 1990s. >> yeah, it is. >> the tax rates are going to be very different. >> we have no idea what they will be.

>> what do you think, tim? >> i think cash on balance sheets says everything. it speaks volumes about what corporate management thinks about prospects going forward and what they want to do. i think they're a very a-political group in general. they want to make money. they're there to make money for shareholders. >> not to lose money. >> right. if they're not there investing, building their business, they're doing it for a very a-political reason, in my opinion. what happens in washington, specifically in the legislature, will determine how this economy goes. >> what do you want to do then, as an investor? you have to put money to work. you have to get beyond this noise. >> you do. you have to continue to ride the central bank. when you look at volatility markets and the action on the markets, the markets are really trading in very much a step function. we get central bank action. the market steps up. we trade for a little bit. we get economic news or earnings that, you know, will either support or knock that down. we'll trade down a little bit. everybody will then say, well, the central bank is going to get

back involved. we mush volatility basically to zero. the market is waiting for longer term structural reform out of washington. >> you like trade debt instruments. does it make it tougher when the fed is squashing yields along the curve? >> it's certainly going to push you into corporates, into assets where you can clip current coupon, whether it's high-yield bonds or high-yield stocks. it's going to force rational investors into those classes. >> do you think the federal reserve stimulus, now qe-3, will move the needle on job creation? >> i think it will help. >> how does it help? >> well, basically this new move is going to help stimulate the housing market by driving down and keeping down already low mortgage rates as well as provide some additional cash for the economy as a whole. i don't think on the margin it's going to be as effective as the last couple rounds have been, but i think it will help a little. you do start to see, for example, the housing market is clearly getting better. still a long way from where it was, but if you look at prices,

sales, they're starting to move up from very low levels. it's starting even already to have a bit of an effect. i don't think it's going to be a game changer. i think it will help a weak economy get a little less weak. >> you sound like you'd want to buy home builders, but they've had a heck of a ride to this point. is it too late to play that game? >> we don't get down to buying that. we're trying to be cautious like everybody else. i still think as you look long term, you get much better value in the bond market. that's where we're trying to run our money. >> we'll leave it there. great to have you on the program. thank you so much. we're in the final stretch. a market that's down about 43 points. >> twitter ceo insists he's not thinking about an initial public offering just yet. i'll bet. up next, get a peek at his game plan to grow his company. after the close, with crude oil hovering near $90 a barrel, how low can it go?

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welcome back. twitter focuses on rolling out ads and adding more users, it's also locked in a major legal battle. >> maria, this is a legal battle with implications not just for twitter but across social media companies. twitter ceo talked to me about this legal battle they're embroiled in right now. the company is appealing a ruling in an occupy wall street lawsuit that required that the company turn over information about a user involved many those occupy wall street protests. he says this this is a key case. >> i'll tell you why i think it's important. we have a core value here at twitter that says we want to defend and respect the user's voice. that's important to us on a global basis. it's one of the reasons we have pseudonyms in twitter so people are free to speak politically in

country where is political speech is oppressed and here where someone who doesn't sign up for a service expecting that their sign-up information is going to be handed over without them being asked for it to a third party. those kinds of rights to that data, we think, are important. we're going to defend our users, those rights. >> now, twitter has handed over the requested information, but it is sealed pending appeal. so this is sure to be a battle that will drag on for quite some time. you can watch more of my interview with him, including his answers to questions that were tweeted in by cnbc viewers. >> thank you very much. you have a twitter account. so do i. i have nothing to say, myself. i think we acknowledge that when you sign up for something like that or facebook or whatever it is, whatever you have on there has the possibility of being public, right? >> for sure.

look, he's got -- >> even your sign-up information. >> he has to protect his users. he's going to be vocal about it, otherwise he will lose business. remember what happened when yahoo! you know, was forced to give up information on folks? google is always saying we will always anonmiez information. you have to believe once your stuff is out there, it's out there. >> it's technology. technology is always way ahead of the rest of us here. the ability of a hacker to get in and get the information or the legal circles to come up with some reason why they should be able to gain access to somebody's twitter account, that's always going to be falling behind technology. >> even governments. governments push these companies to give them the data. you know, give up some information on people. so it's very scary. i always say, if you don't want it on the cover of "the wall street journal," don't do it and don't say it. >> words to live by. we'll take a break and come back with a recap on the day. >> after the bell, don't miss my one on one interview with

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okay. coming up on the six-minute mark before the close. call it a safe-haven day in the mentality of the traders here. as you work your way through the various markets here, euro lower today. they point to the unrest in spain and in greece and so forth. let's face it, it had a good run anyway. now it's moving lower. this is a two-week low for the euro against the dollar. euro goes lower, dollar higher. when dollar goes higher, commodities go lower. oil today is at the lowest level we've seen since early august. another 1.5% decline today, back below $90 a barrel on new york oil. even though you saw that rise in gasoline, but that was an aberration for the rest of the sector, mainly because of supply concerns on that refinery fire up in canada. soybeans, this is a three-month low for soybeans. all the grains moving lower. again, they had a good run to the up side.

now we're seeing profit taking in that sector. when you're taking risk assets off the table, where do you go? you go to the safe havens. that would include the treasuries. that is a three-week low for the ten-year yield. down to 1.16% on the ten-year note. by the way, good five-year note auction today. the dow kind of marking time here, down 33 points. i'm going to look at best and worst performing stocks inside the dow today. the best performer was boeing. the u.s. siding with boeing on a trade dispute with the european union and bank of america was the worst performer for a good portion of the day. down over 1%. it was much lower than that earlier. a lot of the financials were trading lower today. again, among those risk assets they were taking off the table. what were they buying in stocks? we look at the sector performance today among the s&p 500 sectors. the utilities, the ultimate safe-haven play, if you want to call it that, among risk assets, up on the day. in fact, it and the consumer

staples were the only gainers among the ten sectors in the s&p 500. you can imagine the financials were down here among the bottom five. kenny, i don't want to interrupt you, sir. >> i'm good. >> you had been skeptical of this rally in the stock market anyway. now we're seeing this pull back. you think it's the beginning of something? >> no, here's what i think. through the end of the month, we're going to go to 1425 and hold there. that's the level of support. i would be concerned in october once the new quarter starts. i think we're going to hit more volatility and more nervousness in the market. >> when earnings start coming out. >> earnings, presidential debates. there's going to be a focus on the fiscal cliff. i think there's a real possibility we test down at the 1410, which is really long-term downward trend line. it's really going to hold there if it breaks 1425. >> how much credence do you give to the notion of what's going on in europe and these anti-austerity protests are causing some of what we're seeing? >> a lot of it. it brought it back to the

surface again that those problems are nowhere near being solved. greece, spain, now italy. >> you agree? >> absolutely. the ecb -- >> don't we already know the spanish economy needs help? they're going to propose a budget tomorrow. we know it's going to have a lot of deficits. >> what happened last week when the german high court made their decision in everyone thought, this is great. now the ecb can do what they need to do. everything's going to be good. that's not the way it is at all. >> i want to tell the ceo of i-cap is making it happen. they will ask for help, won't they? those conditions are being negotiated right now. >> at some point they have to. it's still that delay, that uncertainty. we've also had a very nice run here. we're over 20% above where we were a year ago. it's not natural to have these low pull backs from time to time. >> this 3% full back from 1475 to now is like a 3% pull back. not the end of the world, but

certainly something the market needs to do in order to test the support. >> you told us in the last segment that your asset allocation broadly speaking is about 61% stocks, 39% bonds. the bonds scene is something of a safe haven play here. what about those who feel that the tremendous low yields we're seeing means we're in something of a bubble? artificial bubble, maybe, forced by the fed's hand. arguably, they're the riskier assets compared to stocks. >> absolutely, i believe that's true. if you're looking at returns over the long run, i think you can do much better in stocks than bonds. bonds do have diversification properties. if you're trying to have a more diversified portfolio, you want to get steadier gains, you can't zero out bonds. >> do you go high yield? where do yo go? >> we are tilted towards credit, high yield, towards the riskier parts of the bond market.

we're tilted away from treasuries. >> of course, high yield being a relative term these days. >> right, but where else are you going to go? you can't go to the treasury market and earn anything. >> exactly. what's on the horizon right now? what's the next day to point or event that could move this market? right now we're going sideways. >> we're going to go sideways until friday. next week we're going to get into the new quarter. payrolls is next friday. they're going to chat it up about that. the presidential debate is next wednesday. they're going to look to see what each candidate is going to say. ultimately, mitt romney has to come out and make some real discussion on what his plan is. everybody is sitting and waiting. investors and americans are going to be sitting and watching intently. >> what earnings season is going to be. >> i was just going to ask you. >> expectations have come down a bit. i wouldn't be surprised if we do better than estimates. >> isn't that the trick all the time? talk it out, talk it out. look how great we're doing.

i think the i think vnvestors a smartening up. >> thank you, gentlemen. stay tuned. hour number two of the "closing bell" with maria is coming up. see you tomorrow. it is 4:00 on wall street. do you know where your money is? hi, everybody. welcome back to the "closing bell." i'm maria bartiromo at the new york stock exchange. another tough day for stocks with the markets losing steam headed into the close. today's losses coming on the backdrop of more violent protests in europe over future austerity measures. in theen end, we saw the dow co down 40 points. oil took a big hit. crude is now down about 10%. later on we'll talk about what it means for the markets with